Best Angle and Direction for Solar Panels in Florida

The short answer

The best direction for solar panels in Florida is south, and the best fixed angle is about 26 to 30 degrees, a bit steeper in North Florida than in Miami. In our model, the ideal is actually a few degrees east of due south, because Florida's summer afternoons are cloudier than its mornings. In practice the roof you have matters less than you might think: a south-facing roof between a 4/12 and 8/12 pitch makes at least 98 percent of the best, southeast and southwest roofs 94 to 98 percent, east roofs 86 to 90 percent and west roofs 83 to 86 percent. North-facing roofs are the only ones that really struggle, at 66 to 71 percent on a 6/12 pitch.

Five Florida cities compared

Yearly output on a 6/12 roof (about 27 degrees) as a share of each city's best fixed angle:

City	South	SE	SW	East	West	North
Miamibest: 26° tilt, 1,485 kWh	100%	98%	95%	90%	86%	71%
Tampabest: 28° tilt, 1,571 kWh	100%	97%	95%	88%	84%	67%
Orlandobest: 29° tilt, 1,518 kWh	100%	98%	94%	89%	83%	67%
Jacksonvillebest: 30° tilt, 1,484 kWh	100%	97%	95%	87%	84%	66%
Pensacolabest: 29° tilt, 1,533 kWh	100%	96%	96%	86%	85%	66%

Source: PVGIS 5.2 (European Commission Joint Research Centre) with NREL's National Solar Radiation Database, 1 kW of panels, 14% system losses. "Best" is PVGIS's optimized fixed tilt and direction for each city; kWh are per kW of panels per year.

The differences between cities are small. Tampa comes out sunniest, about 1,570 kWh per kW a year at the best angle, and Miami and Jacksonville about 1,485. The pattern by direction holds everywhere: south first, then southeast and southwest, then east, then west, with north far behind.

Does roof pitch matter?

Orlando: output by roof pitch and direction

Share of the best fixed angle, from a flat roof to a steep 12/12 (45 degrees)

SouthSoutheastEastWestNorth

Source: PVGIS 5.2 with NREL NSRDB weather, 14% system losses. Dashed lines are southeast and north.

For south-facing roofs, hardly at all: from a 4/12 (about 18 degrees) to an 8/12 (about 34 degrees), a south roof in Orlando stays within 1.5 percent of the best. Pitch matters more as the roof turns away from south. On east and west roofs a gentler pitch is better, and on north roofs it's much better: a 2/12 north roof makes 84 percent of the best, a 6/12 north roof 67 percent. Flat panels make about 91 percent.

Why east beats west in most of Florida

You might expect east and west roofs to come out about even. In our model of Florida's peninsula they don't: an east roof in Orlando makes 88.6 percent of the best, a west roof 83.1 percent. The gap is a summer effect. From June through September, a west roof makes 88 percent of what an east roof does; the rest of the year, 97 percent. That fits what the National Weather Service describes: on summer days, the Gulf and Atlantic sea breezes collide over the peninsula, and you can "usually count on the afternoon cloud buildups."

Orlando: east vs. west roof, month by month (kWh per kW)

JFMAMJJASOND

East-facingWest-facing

Source: PVGIS 5.2 with NREL NSRDB weather, 6/12 roofs, 14% system losses.

The effect shrinks to the south and west: in Miami the summer gap is smaller, and in Pensacola east and west roofs finish within 1 percent of each other over the year. One more summer surprise: from May through August, an east roof in Orlando outproduces a south roof in our model. Over the whole year, south still wins by 12 percent.

What an HOA can require about direction

Florida's solar-rights law bars HOAs from prohibiting solar on your home, but it lets them choose where it goes, within limits. Florida Statutes 163.04 says an association "may determine the specific location where solar collectors may be installed on the roof within an orientation to the south or within 45° east or west of due south if such determination does not impair the effective operation of the solar collectors."

That window, from southeast through south to southwest, is the dashed arc on the compass above, and in our model it's where output is highest: 94 to 100 percent of the best on a 6/12 roof in Orlando. The Florida Solar Energy Center reads the law the same way: placement has to stay within the area needed for effective operation, south, east or west of due south, and an association can't impose placement rules that impair the system. Our HOA solar rules guide covers the approval process.

If your roof faces east, west or north

A roof that faces the "wrong" way usually just needs more panels. Compared with a south-facing 6/12 roof in Orlando, you'd need roughly:

10% more panels laid flat
12% more on an east-facing 6/12 roof
19% more on a low 2/12 north-facing roof
20% more on a west-facing 6/12 roof
49% more on a north-facing 6/12 roof

Many homes use more than one roof face, and that's fine. If the only open roof faces north, a ground mount or carport may be the better choice. To turn these percentages into a system size for your bill, see how much a solar system produces in Florida.

The best angle for a ground mount

If you can set the angle yourself, PVGIS's optimum for a fixed array is a 26-degree tilt in Miami, 28 in Tampa, 29 in Orlando and Pensacola, and 30 in Jacksonville, turned 1 to 12 degrees east of south. You don't have to hit it exactly: in Orlando, anything from about 18 to 34 degrees facing south is within 1.5 percent. Steeper tilts shed rain and dirt better, and panel makers such as Canadian Solar say panels tilted at least 15 degrees generally don't need cleaning; see solar panel cleaning in Florida.

How we modeled it

Every figure on this page comes from PVGIS 5.2, the European Commission's solar model, run for Miami, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville and Pensacola with the PVGIS-NSRDB dataset, which is built on NREL's National Solar Radiation Database. Each run models 1 kW of crystalline silicon panels, fixed in place, with 14 percent system losses (the same default as NREL's PVWatts). We ran 8 directions and 5 roof pitches plus flat and each city's optimized angle.

We checked the Orlando results against NREL's PVWatts v8: for 6/12 roofs, PVWatts gives 1,525 kWh (south), 1,360 (east) and 1,259 (west) per kW, within about 1 percent of PVGIS. Real systems also depend on shade, panel temperature, equipment and weather in a given year, so treat these as comparisons between directions, not a guarantee for your roof.

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Common questions

What is the best angle for solar panels in Florida?

About 26 to 30 degrees for a fixed array: 26 in Miami, 28 in Tampa, 29 in Orlando and Pensacola, and 30 in Jacksonville, by our PVGIS modeling. But the exact angle barely matters on a south-facing roof: in Orlando, anything from a 4/12 pitch (about 18 degrees) to an 8/12 (about 34) comes within 1.5 percent of the best.

What direction should solar panels face in Florida?

South is best, and in our model the ideal is a few degrees east of due south. Southeast and southwest roofs make 94 to 98 percent of the best on a 6/12 pitch, east roofs 86 to 90 percent and west roofs 83 to 86 percent. North roofs make 66 to 71 percent.

Are east-facing solar panels better than west-facing in Florida?

In most of Florida, yes. On a 6/12 roof in Orlando, east makes 88.6 percent of the best and west 83.1 percent, mostly because summer afternoons are cloudier; from June through September a west roof makes 88 percent of an east roof's output. In Pensacola the two are within 1 percent over the year.

Is a north-facing roof OK for solar in Florida?

It's the weakest choice. A 6/12 north roof makes about 67 percent of the best in Orlando, so you'd need about half again as many panels as on a south roof. A low-pitched north roof does better: a 2/12 north roof makes about 84 percent. A ground mount or carport can be an alternative.

Can my HOA tell me which way my solar panels face?

Within limits. Florida Statutes 163.04 lets an association choose the location on the roof within an orientation to the south or within 45 degrees east or west of due south, but only if that doesn't impair the system's effective operation, and it can't prohibit solar.

Do flat solar panels work in Florida?

Yes. Flat panels make 90 to 93 percent of the best fixed angle across the five cities we modeled. They collect more dirt and don't rinse as well in the rain, though.

How much does panel direction change my savings?

Roughly in proportion to output. Compared with a south-facing 6/12 roof in Orlando, an east roof makes about 11 percent less, a west roof about 17 percent less and a north roof about a third less, so it would need about 12, 20 or 49 percent more panels to produce the same.

All output figures are modeled (PVGIS 5.2 with NREL's NSRDB weather data) for a fixed 1 kW array with 14% losses; your roof's shade, equipment and weather will differ. Sources: European Commission Joint Research Centre, PVGIS 5.2 (PVGIS-NSRDB dataset) · NREL's National Solar Radiation Database · NREL PVWatts v8 (cross-check) · NREL, PVWatts Version 5 Manual, default system losses (PDF) · National Weather Service Melbourne, The Florida Rain Machine · Florida Statutes 163.04 (2026) · Florida Solar Energy Center (UCF), Florida Solar Rights Act · Canadian Solar installation manual, U.S. edition 3.3 (PDF). Reviewed September 2026.

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